I remember that as a kid, taking a trip to downtown Los Angeles was almost a scary affair. The heart of the city was filled with bums, gangs, and dirt. It was such a contrast from the securities of the suburb.
As folks my age begin to reach their twentysomethings, though, America is seeing an incredible demographic inversion taking place across its cities. Whereas the late 20th century saw great urban sprawl as rationalist city planning through interstate highways led by urban planners like Robert Moses pushed people from middle to upper income levels out of the city and toward the suburbs, the 21st century is seeing the affluent return. Especially from our generation.
There is an excitement that we place tangibly in being in the city. Even in suburbs and exurbs throughout the country, we are seeing attempts in new urbanism to create "downtowns" or "city centers" of shops and restaurants in these new places. Still, though, the heart of the city offers a unique draw. The article from The New Republic which inspired this post even goes so far as to see the influence of television on our generation's desire to be downtown:
This is the generation that grew up watching "Seinfeld," "Friends," and "Sex and the City," mostly from the comfort of suburban sofas. We have gone from a sitcom world defined by "Leave It to Beaver" and "Father Knows Best" to one that offers a whole range of urban experiences and enticements. I do not claim that a handful of TV shows has somehow produced a new urbanist generation, but it is striking how pervasive the pro-city sensibility is within this generation, particularly among its elite."
Beyond this desire, though, are changing dimensions of downtowns. They are much safer now than they were thirty years ago as industry moves out and chique neighborhoods take their place. In addition, the rising cost of gas and increased congestion on freeways makes commuting less and less desirable. All this comes, though, with troubling shifts in demographics that reflect issues of race and class as gentrification occurs.
Having spent the past couple weeks scanning craigslist for lofts in downtown Los Angeles, it seems that I too can be lumped in the heap with other folks from my generation that have eyes looking toward downtown.
This is one of the of the best articles I have read in quite some time, and really offers interesting commentary on the changing notions of urban space in America's cities in the 21st century:
1 comments:
Very true young man. I write this as I said in my tiny apartment in Astoria, Queens outside of manhattan. Our neighborhood is diverse and equally filled with young Waspy midwesterners that coo to one another about new David Mitchell and Always Sunny in Philadelphia episodes.
btw, I enjoy all the new blog updates. Dwest and I have a blog too, about living in NY. It's not nearly as exciting as one would think.
How's life back in the states?
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